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Shay Given (now retired)


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18 hours ago, sleazy said:

lol one of my best friends is the manager.

 

Its ok but theres better Greene King pubs about

 


Was last in before one of England’s WC games. Had icicles growing on me face, inadvertently put my coat in a decades worth of dust on the windowsill and got served one of the worst pints of my life. Aside from that…

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  • 4 weeks later...
On 21/04/2023 at 16:10, sleazy said:

lol one of my best friends is the manager.

 

Its ok but theres better Greene King pubs about

 

The Hartlepool supporting prick who suddenly was all Liverpool about 5 year ago? Absolute helmet 

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  • 1 month later...
7 minutes ago, Skeletor said:

I love having an unapologetically pro-NUFC ex-player/pundit in the media. Shay's reactions to everything are golden.

Shaka has been the same when he does commentary in the States.

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On 21/07/2023 at 17:12, Skeletor said:

I love having an unapologetically pro-NUFC ex-player/pundit in the media. Shay's reactions to everything are golden.

his son as well during the takeover was mint.

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50 minutes ago, teohgk said:

Reading his story about how's Fat Ashley and his clowns Llambias ,Kinnear treated him makes me hate these cunts even more.

FWIW I think the treatment dished out to Jonas epitomises the club then but... 

 

“It felt like we were drifting, inch by inch, week by week, from being a club that wanted to win and succeed in the Premier League to becoming a club that just wanted to survive in the Premier League. There’s a world of difference between those two approaches, those two ideas, and I only had one career and one chance. I started to think that I would have to move on.

“Eventually the chance to join (Manchester) City came up. They were everything Newcastle were not at the time – ambitious, clear about their plans, willing to spend and attract big players and they wanted success.

“What footballer doesn’t want that in his life?

“Eventually, me and Michael Kennedy had a meeting with Mike Ashley about what the future held. It was at the manager’s office at the training ground and Llambias was there as well. I was willing to listen to what they had to say but ultimately I left it all up to Michael. This is what usually happens with contract and transfer issues, the player leaves it in the hands of someone they trust. I went out of the room soon after the meeting had begun and returned to the car. Michael was back out, sat in the passenger seat, soon after. “We’re not staying,” he said. “That was not a serious offer in any way, shape or form.” Mike Ashley had told Michael the deal being proposed but it was considerably lower than what we were offering new players at the time, who were coming in on huge long-term contracts that would secure them for life.

“My deal did not do that and just confirmed what I already suspected – they weren’t going to pull out the stops to keep me at the club. I was prepared to stay for the rest of my career but, ultimately, I was in my prime, a potential Premier League winning team wanted to sign me and Newcastle did not give any impression they wanted to chase silverware. The sad thing was I’d placed serious, long-term roots down in Newcastle, my children were in school there and I would easily and happily have stayed forever.

“How much did they really want to keep me though? How much did they want to be challenging? Did the boardroom care about keeping their most loyal players? In a word, no.

“In the end, with me unhappy at what was going on and the lack of ambition shown by the club, a gun was put to my head. They said they would not allow me to leave unless I signed a transfer request. By making me hand in a formal written request, it meant they could waive 10 per cent of the fee I otherwise would’ve picked up after moving. With the fee being around £6-8m, it effectively meant I was waiving £600,000 to go.

“It says everything that they were more keen on saving themselves £600,000 than they were keeping hold of a player who had given his absolute all for the club for over a decade. I’d literally spilt blood for Newcastle, pushed myself hard every day, even when times were so tough and quality players were leaving by the second.

“The least the club could’ve done, in my opinion, is prove I was wanted. Instead, they were more interested in the transfer fee than they were me – a proven Premier League player, a dedicated team-man and a good professional. If they were letting me go, and they were more than happy to let the likes of Milner go as well, what does that tell you? It tells me that the economics of the club were a bigger priority than success on the pitch. That saddened me a lot then and it saddens me a lot now.”

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